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FLYWAYS Series filming in Tanzania

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When a Story Finds Its Way Back Home: The Grey Crowned Crane

Sometimes, a story you helped tell finds its way back to you in the most unexpected ways.

Last week, while travelling through Chebilat, I spotted two Grey Crowned Cranes in a farm just next to Chebilat Centre, Kisii, Kenya. I had never seen these birds in our region before, so naturally, I slowed down and wondered whether I could just stop and enjoy the moment.

They were going about their business, seemingly undisturbed by the people and activity around them. Seeing birds this comfortable around people gives you a glimpse of what coexistence can look like. It was a beautiful moment, and one that took me back to a project I worked on in Tanzania earlier this year.

A journey through Tanzania

In January 2026, from Kenya into northern Tanzania to document the story of Leonidas Momburi, a passionate champion of the Grey Crowned Crane.

Alongside Werner Schroeder of NABU e.V. and Emmanuel Mgimwa of Nature Tanzania, we travelled through central Tanzania to the Kagera region, covering thousands of kilometres along the way.

The documentary is part of the Flyways series. It highlights the work that Nature Tanzania, NABU and BirdLife International are doing to support the conservation of the endangered Grey Crowned Crane and improve its population. The story also received wider recognition, with a feature in BirdLife International’s Global Flyways Magazine 2026and forming part of the Flyways official documentary.

I am grateful to Content With Purpose (CWP) for trusting me with this assignment.

One of the things I particularly enjoy about working with CWP is the creative freedom. They encourage me to bring my own element into the storytelling, engage with the characters and have conversations that help bring out their experiences. If you watch the film keenly, you will notice a bit of my approach in it. I love that kind of storytelling.

More stories to tell

My interest in conservation storytelling continues to grow. I have come to appreciate that conservation is not just about wildlife and landscapes. It is also about people, livelihoods, knowledge and the everyday efforts that make coexistence possible.

I look forward to working with more conservation organisations, researchers, practitioners and community initiatives doing meaningful work in this space. There are so many stories worth documenting, and I would love to help bring them to wider audiences through photography, film and creative writing.

That encounter at Chebilat was a simple reminder of why I love this work. Sometimes you travel thousands of kilometres to tell a story, only to find a little reminder of it waiting for you back home. With this film, I can showcase more about these very interesting birds since most of the people from my community don’t know much about them.

A better world for nature and people is possible. I look forward to telling more stories that bring us closer to it.

Watch the documentary here: Community conservation for grey crowned cranes | NABU | Global Flyways

To read the Flyways Magazine

To learn more about the project and watch other films from the series:

Protecting Grey Crowned Cranes through community-led conservation in Tanzania

An extract from the 2026 Global Flyways Magazine by BirdLife International. On the left, Evans Ogeto films Werner Schroeder, one of the key characters in the documentary, along the shores of the Kagera River, an important ecosystem supporting Grey Crowned Crane breeding.
I photographed these Grey Crowned Cranes in Amboseli National Park, Kenya, on 26 January 2026, while travelling back from Tanzania. I have always admired these beautiful birds, not just for their elegance but also for the role they play in the ecosystem. During my time in Amboseli, I watched them flying around and raising alarm calls, alerting other animals to the presence of predators nearby. It was fascinating to witness. Such beautiful creatures, with so much more to them than meets the eye.
We stopped by at Lake Babati for bird watching
The Kagera wetlands are dotted with numerous lakes that provide important breeding grounds for the Grey Crowned Crane. Here, at one of the lakes near Chamchuzi, a fisherman goes about his day, hoping for a good catch. It is a beautiful reminder of how these wetlands support both wildlife and the communities that depend on them.
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